Clinton: ‘I Really Tried to Get Out of Going’ to Trump’s Inauguration

Hillary Clinton went on British TV Friday and joked about the lengths she went to avoid attending President Donald Trump's inauguration.

While on "The Graham Norton Show," Clinton described how she and former President Bill Clinton tried to find a way out of their customary attendance.

"I really tried to get out of going," Clinton said.

Receiving laughter and applause from the crowd, Clinton continued with her story and brought up conversations with former presidents Jimmy Carter and both Bushes.

"We thought, OK, maybe others aren't going," she said, explaining how she and her husband considered skipping the ceremony.

"So you know we called the Bushes, and the elder Bushes were in the hospital, which I think was legitimate," Clinton said with cheers and growing laughter from the crowd.

"We called the younger Bushes they said, ‘Yeah we're going.' We called the Carters they said, ‘Yeah we're going,'" Clinton said.

Clinton noted in the segment that it was something of a "tradition" as a former first lady to attend. She said that commitment applies regardless of the incoming president being a Republican or a Democrat, and it serves as a way to show "support and continuity of our government."

This is not the first time Clinton has spoken about attending Trump's inauguration. She addressed the event in her book What Happened in a much more serious manner. She also commented on CBS’s "Sunday Morning" in September about her thoughts on the speech.

While on the British comedy talk show, Clinton reiterated what she wrote in her book about Trump’s speech being "dark and divisive." She then echoed her previous judgment that it was "cry from the white-nationalist gut."

She finished by tying her feelings back to the former President George W. Bush, bringing up a report from New York magazine of Bush describing the inauguration speech as "some weird shit."

Charles RussellEmail Charles | Full Bio | RSSCharles Russell is a Media Analyst for the Washington Free Beacon. Before joining the Beacon he worked at America Rising and has spent several years on multiple campaigns. Charles can be reached at russell@freebeacon.com, his twitter handle is @charleswrussell.